For Hermione
by NavyGirl Jen
Summary: Dramione fanfic, overly dramatic, pretty sappy, and a little out of character, takes place over their fourth year. Enjoy :) please review, I like constructive criticism.
1. Chapter 1

As I stared out the window of the Hogwarts Express, I thought about what my father had said to me before I got in the train. His hurtful words resounded in my head: "Don't go talking to that mudblood Granger. If you want to stay a Malfoy, you will have nothing to do with her. I want to hear nothing more of this girl, _ever_ again, do you hear me, Draco?" When I just nodded, he said, "Good. Then, get out of my sight." I looked at my mother but she did nothing, though she looked hurt too. I stepped forward to give my mother a hug, but my father put his cane in front of me, and without looking at me, he said, "Go."

I stared at the scenery whizzing by and thought about my summer. At the end of our third year at Hogwarts, I had cornered Hermione. She simply pushed me aside and headed toward the Gryffindor common room. "Granger," I called. She kept walking, and I called her again. I sped after her and grabbed her wrist.

She turned around and glared at me. "What, Malfoy?" she asked angrily.

"Please, just give me a minute," I pleaded.

"What would you want a minute for? To make fun of me?" she asked, tears filling her still glaring eyes.

"Hermione, please," I said.

Her face softened at my use of her first name. "What?" she asked, but not unkindly.

I swallowed as I tried to piece together what I wanted to say. "I...I like you, Hermione, and I'd like us to be friends," I said, not looking at her. I felt her liquid brown eyes on me and I felt the heat rush to my face.

"Really?" she asked. I looked at her and nodded. "I...I like you too, Draco."

I was shocked at her reply. I looked at her skeptically, but her eyes repeated back to me what her lips had said. I smiled at her and she smiled back. "Maybe we can keep in touch over the summer," I offered.

"Okay," she replied enthusiastically. She turned to leave, but thought better of it and turned to face me. She quickly kissed me on the cheek and we both blushed. "I've always wanted to do that," she said and ran away.

And so Hermione and I started dating in secret. We wrote to each other everyday over the summer. I enjoyed getting her letters because she talked about the odd muggle things she and her parents did. We were doing a pretty good job hiding it until I got a letter from her while my father was in the room. He snatched it away form Hermione's owl before I could take it. He opened and read it, and seeing that it was from Hermione, he ripped it up and yelled at me for an hour. He asked how I could betray the family by dating a muggleborn.

After that, he didn't talk to me again until I left for Hogwarts. I sighed and put my head in my hands. What would Hermione think? I didn't get a chance to write to her again after my father found her letter. She'll surely hate me now.

Just as I thought about how odd it was that I had a car to myself, the door opened. I looked up to see Hermione with a fierce look in her eyes. Anger glinted in her beautiful eyes as she stepped into the car and slammed the door shut. "Hermione, please, let me explain," I began, jumping up, but her eyes softened and she put her finger on my lips to silence me. Then she wrapped her arms around my neck in a hug. I was confused now; if she wasn't angry at me, then who WAS she angry at?

I hugged her back around her middle, and after a few seconds, she pulled away. "I saw what happened on the platform," she said. I looked down, embarrassed. "What happened over the summer? Why didn't you respond to any of my letters?" she asked. She sounded hurt.

I looked up at her and saw tears in her eyes. I pulled her into another hug and began my story. I hugged her and we swayed with the train as I told her how my father found one of her letters and ripped it up, then began checking every owl that came through and left. Not wanting to make her feel any worse, I left out that my father had hit me that one time I tried to write a letter to Hermione. He hit me with his cane across my back; I still had the bruise.

When I finished my (poor) explanation, Hermione pulled back and looked at me. "I thought something might have happened to you. Or you didn't want to be with me anymore. Or at all." She mumbled the last thing under her breath, but I heard it.  
"Hey, what do you mean, 'or at all?'" I asked.

She looked at me and bit the inside of her cheek. "Well, over the summer, I started thinking that this was too good to be true. So, that got me thinking that you really didn't like me, and you were just playing with me until you got bored."

I gaped at her. "Why on the bloody earth would I do that?" I asked.

She laughed and shrugged. "Because you're Draco Malfoy," she said with another laugh. "So, we're still together?" she asked me.

"As long as you want to be, I'd like to be," I said.

She smiled at me and hugged me around my middle. I yelped in pain as she pressed on the bruise on my back. "What?" she asked, fear in her voice.

"It's nothing," I said, trying not to show any pain on my face.

"That's not nothing, Draco. What is it?" Hermione asked.

"Nothing, I'm fine. I just...I have a backache," I said quickly.

She narrowed her eyes at me and said, "No it's not. Malfoy, if you can't even tell me what's wrong with your back, how can we expect to have a good relationship? If you lie about little things, who knows where you'll stop."

"Me?" I exclaimed.

She sighed and said, "No, not you. Just _you_," waving her arms around, "in general. People."

"Oh..."

She stepped a little closer so that her face was close to mine. "Please," she whispered, "Just tell me what's wrong."

I knew she would keep pestering me until I told her. That was one of the things that attracted me to Hermione in the first place: her determination. I sighed as I grabbed Hermione's hands and sat down. She sat down next to me, and I started. "The reason why I didn't try to send you an owl was because the one time I did try after my father found your letter, he..." I paused. I looked away from Hermione as I said, "He hit me with his cane."

"He _what_?" Hermione jumped up and looked down at me, still sitting down with my back straight and off the back of the bench.

"I-it's nothing. I'm fine, Granger, please, just let it go."

"Let it go?" she screeched. "How can I let this go? Draco, why didn't you tell someone?"

"Who am I supposed to tell, Hermione?" I cried. "My mother? She's afraid of my father!"

Hermione looked at me sadly. "I don't know. It's just that...muggles, they go to the police. I didn't realize wizards didn't have that," she said.

"It's alright," I sighed. "Don't tell anyone. I don't want my father finding out, and then coming to hurt you. He would do that," I said as her eyes widened in surprise. I stood up and pulled Hermione into another hug. She was careful about her placement of her hands this time, putting them near the small of my back. She looked up at me, and looked into my eyes. I looked down into hers, and before I knew what was happening, she had leaned up on tip toe and kissed me. It wasn't a little peck on the cheek like she did last year. Her soft lips were on mine, and we stayed there for a few seconds before she pulled away. She put her head on my chest and hugged me, and I hugged her back, happy she was finally here with me.

After a while, we sat down again and I closed my eyes again. I felt her move and opened my eyes, then looked down at Hermione. She had her own eyes closed and her head was in my lap.

I was running my fingers through her bushy curls when it suddenly became quite dark outside. I looked out the window and saw dark, menacing clouds hanging above the train. A flash of lightning struck something in the distance, and seconds later, a clap of thunder boomed over head, vibrating the train and waking Hermione. She sat up with a start and looked from me to the window.

"What happened?" she asked.

"You fell asleep, and some thunder woke you up," I said.

She looked around the dark car and sat down again. "How much longer until we get there, do you think?" she asked me.

I laughed and shrugged. "Quite a while, I'm sure. The lunch trolley hasn't even arrived yet."

No sooner than the words had left my lips did we hear it making its way down the hall.

Hermione looked at me, and even though I knew what she was going to say, I asked, "What is it?"

She stood up and said apologetically, "I have to go. Harry and Ron are going to wonder where I've been."

I closed my eyes at the mention of that Potter boy. "Okay," I said and stood up.

"You're angry," Hermione said.

"No, it's fine. Go. They're the last people I want to find out about us," I said with disgust.

She smiled and giggled a little, then kissed me on the cheek and said, "Thank you. See you later, Malfoy. We'll see how well you can act." She pushed me back down on the bench and I laughed and groaned at the same time. She left the car, and as she closed the door, she gave me a wink.

I let out a content sigh and turned to stare out the window again. The rain was pouring down the window, leaving little tracks that intertwined with each other. The car door opened behind me, and I turned around. Standing in the doorway, mouths agape, were the two Weasley twins.

"Well, if it isn't Weasley one and Weasley two. How may I be of service, boys?" I asked coolly.

"What were you doing with Hermione?" one asked; I think it was Fred.

"Granger? What would I want with a mudblood like her?" I asked. It hurt to hear that, especially since it came from my own mouth.

"That's what we're here to find out," the other said.

"We saw her come out of this car," the one I thought was Fred said.

"Yeah, and she wouldn't answer our questions either, asking what she would need with a weasel such as yourself," said the one I assumed was George.

"Come on now," Fred said, "we can keep a secret. You should know that."

When I said nothing and just stared at them, they both leaned back with sly smiles on their faces. "We already know what's going on between you two," George said.

"Yeah, George and I just happened to look inside as we passed, and we saw you guys sitting together," Fred said.

I swallowed, but kept a straight face as I said, "You will tell no one what you saw, or I will find a way to break you, whether it be physically, mentally, or emotionally, I will do it."

The twins looked at each other and smiled. "But what about Hermione?" Fred asked.

"Yeah, won't you hurt her feelings but hurting her friends?" George asked.

"If you tell anybody what you saw without us coming out about it first, it won't matter, because you won't be her friends," I said icily.

The twins' smiles wavered a bit and their eyes spelled defeat. "We have a clever one on our hands, George," Fred said.

"That we do," George agreed.

"We could use you," they said in sync.

I looked at them in utter disgust. "What?" I spat.

"Here's out proposition, Malfoy," Fred said. "Despite what you said about being Hermione's friend being true, we could still tell our friends-"

"And we have a lot of those," George interrupted.

"We could still tell our friends about you and Miss Granger. That could ruin you and your family."

"See, there is where your fault lies, gentlemen," I said calmly, even though my heart was racing. If they did tell, not only would they ruin me, but they'd also ruin Hermione. "You _could_. That doesn't mean you will. I know you Weasleys better than you think. You won't do it." I smiled coolly at them. "When you leave this car in a few moments, what is the one thing you want from me that will satisfy you?"

The twins looked at each other and smiled. "Nothing," they said together.

I gave them a puzzled look and asked, "So what is it that you're doing here?"

George sat forward and put his elbows on his knees. "What we want is to make bloody sure Hermione's found a guy that will take care of her. Congratulations. You've earned our trust," he said as he extended a hand for me to shake.

"I don't understand," I said. "How does blackmailing me prove anything?"

Fred laughed. "Stupid boy. The first thing you mentioned was not yourself, but her. You obviously care more about her than yourself." He smiled and got up. "You better take good care of her, mate," he said as he extended his own hand. I was about to shake two Weasleys' hands. For Hermione, I shook them both, and they left me in my car all alone again.

"The things you do for love," I muttered to myself.

"Anything from the trolley, dear?" the witch who ran it asked.

"No, thank you," I said.

She shrugged and kept moving.

I sat down and stared out the window, bored out of my mind. I had no idea where Crabbe, Goyle, Pansy, or Blaise were. They usually found me. _Oh well_, I thought to myself. I didn't really like the first three anyway. Crabbe and Goyle were too stupid for me. I had to explain _everything_ to those bloody morons. Pansy was so clingy. I felt like I couldn't breathe when she was around. Blaise, he was okay. He was smarter than those three morons, but we weren't as close. I liked him the best anyway, and as strange as it was, Hermione liked him the best, too.

With nothing to do other than wish I had a friend to talk to, I decided to get into my Hogwarts robes. I pulled my trunk down from the metal rack above and opened it, rummaging through my neatly packed things to find a shirt, pants, my tie, and my robes. I pulled out my wand while I was in there, not knowing if I would need it. I closed my trunk and put it back, then took off my jacket. I looked out into the hallway to make sure no one was coming. When the hallway looked clear, I took my shirt off and grabbed my white uniform shirt while facing the window. I had just put my arms in it when I heard the door open. I turned around and saw Hermione, standing wide-eyed in the doorway, looking from my bare chest to me.

"Um," Hermione said nervously. "Sorry, I left my lip gloss in here. Somewhere. On the seat, I think." She smiled sheepishly as she looked at my bare chest again, then back to my face. Her looking at me made me feel a little self conscious, so I quickly buttoned up my shirt. She grabbed a small tube of soppy pink glitter off the seat and held it up. "Um, that's it," she said with a nervous giggle. She stepped back into the door and fumbled with the handle a bit.

"Wait," I said. "Is it really that bad?" I asked, pinching at some flubber on my stomach.

"Bad?" she laughed. "Far from it, Malfoy, far from it." She let out a content sigh and quickly let the car.

"'Far from it?'" I asked myself. I quickly took off my pants and pulled the other ones on, tucking my shirt in on the way up. I quickly knotted my tie, but left my robes on the seat next to me. I started getting impatient, wanting to get to Hogwarts more that I ever wanted to in my life. Whenever we had double classes, it was with the Gryffindors, so I looked forward to that.

I just wished that Hermione and I could spend more time together.

I really do think I love her.


	2. Chapter 2

The sorting had just finished, and everyone in the Great Hall was eating and talking happily amongst themselves. Everyone, except me. I was sitting at the Slytherin table, resting my chin in my hand, picking at my food, and wishing that I was with Hermione.

We had seated ourselves so that we could look at each other, and we did so often.

Every time she looked at me, she smiled for a second before moving on to answer a question directed at her or join in a conversation. I hardly took my eyes off of her. She was just so beautiful.

"You wouldn't happen to be staring at Granger, would you?"

I turned to my left and saw Blaise smirking at me. "Why would I be staring at her?" I asked, faking disgust.

"I don't know. Maybe you like her," he said, poking me in the arm.

"Shove off, Blaise," I said, pushing him away.

"You DO like her!" he gasped.

"Shut up! Shut up, okay?" I hissed. This was the second bloody time today someone's figured out about us.

"Please, I already know, Draco. I saw Granger coming out of the car you were in, and she told me what you want to keep hidden."

"Well, what did you do to her to make her tell you?" I said, getting a little angry.

"Nothing. I just started playing with her hair, and she got all scared, saying that she has a boyfriend. I asked her who, but she wouldn't tell me. I was just commenting on how pretty she was," Blaise said with a smirk, "and she got all defensive, asking how I could do this to my friend. That right narrowed it down. I highly doubt she'd be dating one of those two morons," he said, nodding in the direction of Crabbe and Goyle, "and last time I checked, Pansy's a girl."

I looked at Hermione again, then said, "Tell no one."

Blaise put his hand on my back. "Nah, I wouldn't do that. I always thought you two were a match."

I looked at Blaise questioningly and was about to say something when Professor Dumbledore stepped up to his special podium. "Students, if I may have your attention," he said majestically. Every student stopped what he or she was doing to listen to our headmaster. "As you all should know by your letters, this year, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is hosting the TriWizard Tournament. In October, we will be welcoming to our halls the students of Beauxbatons Academy of Magic and the students of Durmstrang Institute. One witch or wizard from each school will be chosen to participate in the tournament. To make sure all of our students stay safe, an age restriction of 17 will be placed around the Goblet of Fire, where those who wish to participate enter their names." The room around us resounded in groans and protests. Dumbledore put his hand up, and everyone quieted themselves. He said with a smile, "Don't worry. It's nearly as, if not more, fun to watch as it is to participate. With that said, our bellies full, and our beds waiting, you may go to your common rooms. Sleep well, my children."

Everyone got up and started following the prefects to their houses. I didn't get to see Hermione before I left, and that seemed to ruin my night.

At breakfast the following morning, I walked into the Great Hall to see Hermione already at the Gryffindor table. She looked at me excitedly and smiled. I smiled back and took my seat at the Slytherin table. Professor Snape came to Blaise, Crabbe, Goyle, and me to give us our schedules.

I was pleased to see that we had double Potions with the Gryffindors, as well as Transfiguration and Defense Against the Dark Arts. So that's why Hermione was so excited. With Snape and that new Moody guy, I could get away with what I wanted, but Professor McGonagall was one tough teacher. She clearly favored Potter. He was a problem that needed to get fixed; there was no way he'd ever accept one of his best friends dating his enemy.

_That's just too bad_, I thought to myself. _I don't accept him as a person, yet here he is_. I chuckled to myself and looked at Hermione again. She was already looking at me, and she motioned with her head at the door. I smiled and, getting the hint, I excused myself and went to go meet her outside.

_She's a smart girl_, I thought to myself as minutes passed. _She knows what she's doing._ I had never been more right in my life (except when I told Hermione I had liked her) because she came out a few seconds later. She motioned with her eyes to our place under the stairs and walked past me. I bent down to pretend to fix my shoe and after a few seconds, I followed her.

She smiled at me and said, "Good morning. How did you sleep?" as she wrapped her arms around my neck.

"Well enough, but I could have slept better," I said honestly.

"Why? Was it your back?" she asked quietly.

I smiled and gave her a kiss. "No. I didn't get to see you before everyone left," I said.

She giggled and hugged me. "So," she said, "we have three classes together."

I smiled and nodded. "I'm glad, too. Except for Transfiguration. McGonagall bloody hates me," I said.

Hermione laughed and said, "No she doesn't. You just don't behave well in her class."

"Is that so?" I asked as I tickled her side. I just loved hearing her laugh.

"Yes," she laughed. "You're not exactly her number one student."

"Yes, and Potter is," I said bitterly.

She sighed and looked at me.

I just looked away, immediately feeling badly about saying something bad about her friend. "Sorry," I said softly.

She lightly kissed my nose and said, "It's alright. I know you don't get along too well with Harry. He hasn't been the nicest guy in the world."

"Yes, but neither have I," I sighed.

"You know, in my opinion, I think he started this feud between you two."

I looked at her incredulously. "Really?"

"Yes," she said.

"If he hadn't made that comment about picking friends or whatever, you two might be friends. He didn't have to be so rude about it," she said.

I laughed and kissed her on the cheek. "Okay," I said. "For you, I will try to make nice with Potter."

Her face brightened. "Really?" she asked. I nodded and she hugged me again. "Thank you!" she said and gave me a light kiss. "I'll see you in Potions!" and she bounded off.

I leaned against the stairs and thought, _Damn, I must really love this girl to offer on my own to make nice with Potter._

I kept that in mind as I walked into the Great Hall behind the man himself.

When I got to Potions that morning, I saw that, as usual, Hermione was already there. Because she was sitting with Potter and Weasley who were glaring at me, neither of us smiled at each other like we usually do. We just locked eyes for a moment, and I moved on. I took a seat next to Blaise, who elbowed me in my side. "You didn't say hello to your girlfriend," he teased. I shoved him away from me and he laughed. "Oh come on, can't you take a bloody joke?" he asked, still laughing.

"Not when Potter is in the room, please," I said, glancing at him.

To my (unreasonable) surprise, was already glaring at me.

I turned back to Blaise uncomfortably and said, "I have to try to make nice with the attention seeker and his pet weasel. I really want to stay with Granger, so I'm going to try."

"Why do you still call her by her last name?" Blaise asked.

"I dunno. She still calls me 'Malfoy,' unless she's being serious. The same is with me. I only call her 'Hermione' when I'm being serious."

At that moment, Professor Snape walked in. He looked at the class and said, "Today, we'll be working on a new potion. It's in your books on page 219. You'll be working with partners that I will pick out for you." I swallowed at his last words. "Zabini and Weasley, Parkinson and Granger-" I couldn't help but let out a disappointed moan, "Crabbe and Finnigan, Goyle and Thomas..." Snape went down the list, and as the people left in the class dwindled, I knew who I was getting paired up with. "...and Malfoy and Mr. Potter," Snape finished.

I chanced a glance at Hermione and she gave me a supportive smile and a thumbs up._ I guess it's time to make nice with Potter,_ I thought. I looked across the room at Potter, who made no move to come to me. I grabbed my books and irritatedly walked to the glaring kid.

I looked at Hermione pleadingly and she mouthed, "Please, try."

I sighed and mouthed back, "For you."

She smiled at me gratefully and I sat down next to Potter. I opened my book to page 219 and looked at the potion we were making. It seemed easy enough. I shot a sideways glance at him, who had done nothing yet. I uncomfortably pulled out the ingredients needed and my cauldron. I set everything on the table in front of us and looked at him expectantly. "Well, are you going to do anything or just sit there?" I asked.

He looked at me with a bored expression and opened his book. He read over the instructions and started putting things together.

After reading the instructions myself, I realized that he was doing it wrong. "Potter, you have to put the dandelion root in with the honeywater and _then_ add the powdered root of asphodel," I said.

He just kept going.

"Hello? Did you hear me? I said you're doing it wrong."

He just kept going.

"Potter! Are you bloody deaf? You're doing it wrong! You're going to make the wrong thing!" I cried angrily.

"I know," he said simply.

I stared at him incredulously. "If you so bloody well know then why are you still doing it?" I asked him.

He shrugged.

"Well, if you're going to use my ingredients, could you at least _attempt_ to do the assignment instead of purposely making the wrong thing?" I asked as kindly as I could.

He inhaled sharply and roughly handed me the cauldron. "Here. Go dump his out hen," he said rudely.

_Deep breath, Draco_, I said to myself. For Hermione. I clenched my teeth and tried to smile. I got up and walked to the back of the room to dump out the concoction Potter had made. I quickly rinsed the cauldron and dried it, and as I passed Hermione, she looked at me apologetically and mouthed, "Sorry." I gave her the best smile I could muster and shook my head. She looked at me a bit longer before going back to what she was doing. I took sharp breaths and tried very, _very_ hard not to raise my voice at Potter again.

When we finished our potion before class was over, we just sat there, staring ahead of us. I kept saying over and over in my head, "Hermione, I love you. Hermione, I love you," to remind myself why I was putting up with this crybaby nonsense.

Snape came over to our table and loomed over us then, looking at us over his hooked nose. "May I speak with you both outside, please?" he asked and turned towards the door.

"See what you did?" I hissed.

"Me?" Potter hissed back.

We both looked at Snape, who was staring at us. We quickly got up and walked past him, outside.

Snape closed the door and crossed his arms across his chest. "I put you boys together hoping that you could settle your differences long enough to make a potion. Clearly, I was wrong. So, from now on, whenever you are to work with partners, you will be each other's. Until the end of the year."

"What?" we both cried.

"Did I stutter?" Snape sneered, droning out the rhetorical question. "You two will be partners until the end of the year."

No! This couldn't be happening!

"But Professor, I can't work with him!" we both cried at the same time. We both shot a disgusted glare at the other and I saw Professor Snape suppress a smile.

"You are more alike than you realize," Snape said. "Now, get back inside."

I walked in, disgusted and dazed, behind Potter. We sat back down, staring ahead until the class ended.

Weasley came up next to Potter and glared at me. "Great job, Malfoy," Potter mumbled as he slung his bag over his shoulder.

"Leave it to you, Potter, to go crying off to your poor ginger boyfriend," I shot back.

Hermione nudged me as she passed, and I immediately closed my mouth. She had also shoved a note in my hand.

When the trio left, I read it. It said: Lunch-our place. I crumpled the note back up and shoved it in my pocket as I left.

Without even going into the Great Hall during lunch, I just went to our place under the stairs to wait for Hermione. I was still fuming about Potions, and I didn't want to yell at her for nothing, so I tried to calm myself down before she came. I paced under the stairs and took deep breaths until I was dizzy, and I sat down to wait for her. It was a few minutes before she came. "Draco?" she said.

I looked up and smiled at her a little. "Hey," I said as I stood up.

"What happened outside with Snape and Harry?" she asked quietly. "Harry's been fuming about it since we left Potions."

"And he's not the only one," I said. "Snape made us 'permanent Potions partners' for the rest of the year. Hooray," I said in mock excitement, waving my arms above my head. "At least it'll be easier to make nice with Potter..."

"Oh gosh," Hermione said. "Harry's going to ruin your Potions grade!"

I laughed and said, "Snape is my Head-of-House, remember? He won't let me fail because of Potter."

Still, she looked worried.

"Hey, stop frowning. You'll get wrinkles," I said, rubbing her forehead with my thumb. She smiled and laughed a little. "Don't worry about me. I can handle him," I said and kissed her.

She smiled and kissed me again, longer and harder this time. She smiled at me again and left, walking back into the Great Hall.

I sighed as I picked up my bag and wished that we didn't have to keep it so secretive. I just wanted to be able to walk into the Great Hall, holding my girlfriend's hand and not be glared at or judged.

You can't chose who you love, so why does that make it okay for people to judge you?


	3. Chapter 3

The month of September went by rather quickly, except for Potions class, where it seemed that Professor Snape made us work with partners twice a week. I was doing everything I could to be nice to Potter, but he just threw my attempts back in my face. When I told Hermione, she just said, "Don't let him get to you. You're doing great. I'll try to get him to be nicer, okay?" When I just nodded, she kissed my nose softly and said, "Thank you." She turned and went back into the Great Hall to eat her lunch.

I slowly sunk against the wall and sat there until lunch was over.

When October came, the Durmstrang students and the Beauxbatons students arrived, each in their own jaw-dropping ways. The Durmstrang students arrived by a massive ship that rose out of Hogwarts' own lake, while the Beauxbaton students arrived in a huge coach pulled by large pegasuses. They each did their studying in their respective rides, but dined with us in the Great Hall.

All of the girls were obsessing over the Bulgarian seeker, Viktor Krum. It annoyed me a bit, but I was pleased to see that Hermione kept her distance. All of the boys obsessed over this Beauxbatons girl who was said to be part veela. I don't know what everyone saw in her. Yeah, she was pretty, but I thought she was hardly anything compared to my Hermione.

The day came to choose the TriWizard Tournament Champions. The Goblet of Fire normally had a blue glow, but it was slowly turning red. Professor Dumbledore lowered the flames on the hovering candles, and silenced all the students in the Great Hall.

The first name was spit out of red fire, and Dumbledore read the name: "Cedric Diggory," he bellowed. Everyone clapped for the Hogwarts champion.

The second name was spit out, and Dumbledore read that as well: "Fleur Delacour." That was the veela girl everyone obsessed over.

The last name was spit out, and Dumbledore read that as well: "Viktor Krum." The Great Hall resonated with the clapping of students from all three schools.

Dumbledore began, "I present to you, our TriWizard Champ-" The goblet glowed red fire again, and another name was spit out. Our headmaster slowly grabbed the charred paper and read the name: "Harry Potter."

My head reeled, and I looked to Hermione. Her face was contorted in horror as her best friend slowly got up and walked dazed to the podium on which Dumbledore was standing. She looked back at me, and I screamed at her in my head, "How am I supposed to deal with this?" She stared at me with horror and tears filled her eyes. The Great Hall slowly filled with whispers and murmurs, wondering how Potter got passed the age barrier.

I motioned with my head to our place outside, and she nodded. She got up first and walked out, saying something to Weasley as she passed. I waited impatiently for a few moments and went outside to meet her. She was pacing under the stairs, tears streaming down her face.

"What the hell was that?" I asked, pointing to the Great Hall.

"I don't know," she sobbed. "Harry didn't put his name in there, I swear. He didn't do it! Please, don't be angry! Ron's furious," she said, looking at me.

I sighed and pulled her into a hug. "I'm not mad. I just want to know what's going on. You're his best friend, and if something bad happens to him, something bad is probably going to happen to you. I don't want that," I said softly.

"I know," she said into my chest. "I want to know what's happening too. But not even Harry has any idea." I hugged her as she sobbed some more, and after a few minutes, she wiped her eyes and gave me a kiss. "Thank you," she said as she walked back into the Great Hall.

I nodded and waited a few minutes before going back in myself.

It seemed like this wasn't getting any easier, nor would it ever. But I was willing to try. For Hermione.


	4. Chapter 4

About a month passed, and every student was excited about the first TriWizard, or QuadWizard really, Tournament task. We all gathered outside and filed into the Quidditch pitch that was filled with rocks and dirt, and eventually, a dragon.

The first person to come out of a small tent was the Beauxbatons girl, Fleur. The whole idea of this task was to get a golden egg, but the catch was, you could only use one spell. I wasn't paying attention to the spell she used. But she got her egg anyway, which was good.

Next was our own Cedric, and he got his egg as well.

After was Durmstrang's Viktor Krum, and finally, Potter.

They all got their eggs, and we were sent back into the castle. I was hoping to sit near Hermione, but she was surrounded by her friends. The Weasley twins looked at me amusedly as I moped about, trying to figure out how to talk to her. I didn't get to see her until after the announcement that there will be a Yule Ball being held in the Great Hall in honor of the TriWizard Tournament.

"This should be fun," Hermione said with a smile under the stairs.

I laughed and replied, "Are you ready to come out about us? I don't mind. I really want to take you as my date."

She giggled and blushed a bit. "I would love to, but-" she quickly silenced herself as we heard someone coming down the stairs.

It was Potter and Weasley.

We both held our breath as they passed right above us. Those two ninnies were arguing about something. Again. I looked at Hermione and her eyes were wide with fright. She looked at me a breathed slowly, not wanting her two best friends to hear her with their enemy. They went into the Great Hall, and I let out my breath. We both looked at each other and laughed.

She hugged me around the neck and said, "I guess that answers that question." She pulled away and left her slender arms around my neck, looking into my eyes. "Draco, I would love to be your date, but I don't think we're ready. Harry and Ron have just become friends again, and I don't want us to tear their fragile friendship apart. I'm sorry if that makes me sound selfish," she added as she looked away.

I lifted her chin up so she was looking at me. "Hey, it's alright," I said. "I understand." She smiled at me and hugged me again. "Let's make a deal," I said. She pulled away and looked at me curiously. "Let's promise not to get angry about whoever we choose as our dates," I suggested.

She smiled and said, "That's a good idea. We have ourselves a deal. Now," her smile changed, though it was still a real smile, "let's seal it with a kiss."

I laughed and kissed her. She pressed me to her and we stayed in the kiss for a few seconds before coming back into the real world. "The deal is done," I whispered.

She smiled at me and left our place, going back upstairs instead of going back inside the Great Hall to eat. Her footsteps thudded lightly overhead as I thought of who my new date to the Yule Ball would be.


	5. Chapter 5

Weeks passed and I still didn't have a date as the ball was only days away. When I asked Hermione if she had a date, she said yes, but she wouldn't tell me who. All she would say is, "You'll find out soon enough." She would laugh at me when I said I didn't have a date yet. "Maybe I can help you," she said one day, still laughing. I looked at her skeptically, but she said, "No, really. You remember that girl I was making a potion with two weeks ago? She really likes you. Her name is Daphne, maybe you know her?"

I just laughed. "Daphne? As in, Daphne Greengrass?"

"Yes," Hermione laughed. "Just give it a shot. What's the worst that can happen?"

"I'll be dateless for the Yule Ball," I replied.

She looked at me and sighed. "You'll be fine, Malfoy." She kissed me on the cheek. "Good luck," she teased as she left.

I groaned as I realized that Daphne was my last chance at not being a loser. _Come on now_, I thought to myself, _you're Draco Malfoy. She won't say no to you_.

Sure enough, when I asked her in the common room that night, she accepted and ran to her dorm excitedly to gloat in Pansy's face. I laughed as I sat down in front of the fireplace and contemplated what I was going to wear to the Yule Ball in three days.

On the night of the Ball, I met Daphne outside our common room, and we made our way upstairs. She twittered excitedly at how interesting this was going to be.

I just nodded as I searched the crowd for Hermione. When I finally spotted her, she was shouting at Weasley and crying. She pushed through the crowd to get away from him as he called after her.

She passed by us and I grabbed her arm. "Why are you crying, Granger?" I sneered. "Someone else call you a mudblood?"

Though her face looked hurt, her eyes said something else. She pulled her arm out of my grasp and kept walking.

Though on the outside I laughed, in my heart, I wanted more than anything to go and comfort her. My heart eventually won this battle, and I excused myself, saying that I left something in the common room. I chased after Hermione and found her sobbing against a wall, leaning into someone who was not me. The person turned around, and I saw it was Viktor Krum. I stared in shock as the seeker's eyes grew dark and angry.

Hermione looked up and gasped. "Go away, Malfoy. I'm not in the mood for your nonsense," she sobbed, wiping her eyes. Was this real? Her eyes usually told me the answer to that question, but I couldn't tell.

"Granger, is this-"

I was cut off by Krum. "She said to leave her alone," he said.

"No, but you don't understand-"

"I don't need to understand," he said. "Are you the one who made Hermy-own-ninny upset?"

I shook my head. "No, I'm here to-"

Krum interrupted me again. "I don't care vhat you're here for. Go."

I looked at Hermione, who said nothing, who did nothing, and I turned away. I wanted her to call me back, to tell _me, _her_ boyfriend_, what was wrong, why she was crying. It didn't matter what we said in front of that Durmstrang student. He didn't go here. What does it matter if he knows we're going out? I wanted her to call me back, and I paused at the end of the hall, waiting, but she said nothing. I bowed my head down and turned the corner, heading back to my date.

Daphne was waiting for me as the sea of people started moving in. The Champions entered last, so I saw Cedric and Cho Chang, Fleur and Roger Davies, and Potter and one of the Patil twins, Parvati, I think, waiting as everybody else went into the Great Hall.

As Daphne and I walked in, I couldn't help but think of Hermione. Was she done with me? Was that real? Why didn't she call me? Did she really care that much about keeping it a secret that she lied to people who didn't even go here?

The more I thought about it, the more ridiculous the answers I came up with became.

I didn't understand. I was trying to become friends with my enemy for her, and she couldn't even tell me why she was crying in front of a foreign student?

As the night wore on, I became angrier and angrier until I was in a rage. Daphne saw how angry I was and asked, "Are you okay? Do you need to be alone?"

I just nodded, not wanting to yell at her; she had done nothing to me, so why be mean?

She nodded and went to go dance with somebody who came without a date. I sat down near the back of the room, gritting my teeth and trying to come up with a good reason for all of this.

I had my head in my hands and was rubbing my temples when I saw two feet in my view. I knew who it was just by the blue polish on her toes. I didn't look up, even though I knew she was waiting for me to.

"Draco," she said softly.

I still didn't look up.

"Draco, please." She put her hand on my shoulder and I shrugged it off. "Draco, please, I'm sorry," she said.

I heard her voice shake and knew that tears were filling her eyes, but I didn't care. I still stared down at the floor.

"Draco," she cried. "Look at me!"

I looked up at her to see her crying again. "What do you want?" I asked.

"I want you to listen," she sobbed.

"What for? When I was there to listen, you pushed me away-"

"No I didn't!" Hermione said defensively.

"Well you didn't want me!" I shot back. "I left my date waiting, for you! And I see you crying into someone else. At first it was okay, because I figured he was your date, and we agreed not to get mad. But then, you pushed me away and had your date chase me away even farther. I waited at the end of the hall for you, but you said nothing. When I was there to listen, you didn't want me. Now that you don't have Mr. Bulgaria to cry on, you want me," I said coldly.

Hermione just stared at me. "I-I didn't know that's how you saw it," she said quietly.

"How else was I supposed to see it?" I cried. "You wouldn't even accept my help in front of someone who doesn't go here! What do you think that tells me? Huh?"

She just looked at the floor.

"Answer me!"

"I don't know," she whispered.

"You don't?" I said. "Well let me tell you. The message I got from you not calling me back was that you're not committed." Her face contorted in shock. I nodded and continued, "I understand trying to keep it a secret from your friends, and in order to do that, we have to keep it a secret from the whole bloody school, but to try to keep it a secret from someone who doesn't even go here? Come on, 'Mione. I thought you were better than that! I'm making friends with the guy I hate the most for you, and you couldn't even tell me what was wrong in front of Viktor bloody Krum?"

She just looked down again.

I got up from the chair I was sitting on and said, "I want to find a way to make this work, Granger. As long as you want it, we can still be together. If you want this to work as much as I do, say so, or I'll consider us through."

Hermione gasped and said quickly, "I do, but-"

"That's all I needed to hear," I interrupted. "See you in Potions on Monday," I said and walked out, leaving Hermione crying in the seat I just left.


	6. Chapter 6

I didn't look at Hermione as I passed her on Monday morning. She had been trying to talk to me all weekend, and she almost cornered me at Hogsmeade, but I dodged her well enough. I felt horrible about leaving her there, crying her eyes out, but I was also so furious with her. I knew I was probably blowing things out of proportion, but I just didn't understand. I wasn't not talking to her because I was ignoring her; it killed me to see her crying because of me. I wasn't talking to her because I didn't want to start yelling at her again like I did at the Yule Ball.

I felt her watching me as I took my seat.

Blaise elbowed me in the side and whispered, "Hey, what's going on with you and Granger? She's been crying all weekend. Did you guys break up?"

I shook my head and said, "No. We just...we had an argument. That's why she's upset. I kinda don't want to talk to her about it, though." I felt embarrassed at how selfish I was being.

"Well, why don't you tell me about it?" he asked. "I see her in the library almost every day. Maybe I could help you guys," he offered.

I sighed. "Thanks, but I'll talk to her myself. I want to talk to her anyway before we leave on Thursday. I don't think I could go that long without talking to her," I said.

Blaise was about to say something, but Professor Snape walked in. "Get with a partner and turn to page 602. Get to work," he said.

I sighed and rolled my eyes as I got up to go sit next to Potter. He already had his book open and the ingredients out. I pulled out my cauldron and we began working in silence. "Um, how has Granger been doing?" I asked.

Potter looked at me incredulously. "Why do you care?" he asked.

I felt myself blush slightly and I looked down, continuing to pull the leaves off the root needed for the potion. "I don't, I just noticed that she was crying at the Yule Ball. I have a heart, Potter," I said.

I felt him staring at me, and he said slowly, "She's fine, I suppose. She's been a bit down, but nothing to worry about." I dropped the root I was playing with and sighed as I put my head in my hands. "What's wrong with you, Malfoy?" he asked.

I sighed and debated whether I should tell him about Hermione and me. I was about to when I changed my mind and said, "I have a headache." I glanced at him to see if he accepted my lame excuse. He looked at me skeptically, but continued working on the potion. I turned to look at Hermione working with Parvati, and it was as if she felt me looking at her because she looked up and into my eyes.

We stayed there, locked in each other's gaze until Potter shoved me. "Hello? Can we get back to the potion, please?"

I turned back to him and said quickly, "Yeah, of course."

We worked on the potion for a few more minutes before we finished, putting it in a phial with both of our names on it. While Potter put our phial of potion on Professor Snape's desk, I scribbled a quick note for Hermione. I crumpled up the parchment as Potter came back, and the class ended. As she passed, I pretended to bump into her as I shoved the note in her hand.

She pushed me away from her rather hard, and I stumbled into the table behind me. She looked at me, and her face was plain, angry even, though her eyes were dark and sorry.

I smirked tauntingly at her and she left the classroom. I watched her leave and smiled triumphantly to myself as she opened the note.

She looked back at me and smiled a little, hope in her eyes.


	7. Chapter 7

I was waiting under the stairs for Hermione later that night. It's a good thing there's an entrance to the dungeons right next to the stairs, because I didn't have the advantage of a best friend with an invisibility cloak. Yeah, I knew about that. I waited impatiently as the minutes ticked by, and every noise made me jump. Soon, a half hour had passed, and there was still no sign of Hermione.

I sat down and waited, tracing the little crevices in the marble stairs. I began to think she wasn't coming after about 45 minutes.

But I still waited.

I held my breath as I heard footsteps. I knew they weren't Hermione's because they were heavier. They sounded like an adult's. I dared a peak around the stairs and saw Professor Snape. He was coming from a hallway parallel to the stairs and was going towards the dungeons. Before he went inside, he looked back at where I was standing.

I froze in my place as he looked right at me. He looked at me for a few seconds before walking over to me. My breath caught in my throat as he stepped up to me. "Professor, I-" I began, but he cut me off.

His voice was soft, unlike in class. "Don't lose her like I lost mine. Make it right, now."

I swallowed. "Professor, I don't understand."

He looked at me with something of a fatherly look in his eyes. "You will, in time," he said and walked away. He slipped into the dungeons without another word, and I was left there, waiting for Hermione, more confused than ever.

It had been a little over an hour by the time I had given up waiting for Hermione. I wasn't angry at her. I was angry at myself; I did this to myself. I kicked the inside of the stairs as I put my face in my hands and sat on my haunches. "Why do you have such a bloody short temper, Draco?" I yelled at myself. I heard a gasp and looked up, but saw nothing. "Hermione?" I asked.

She pulled off Potter's invisibility cloak. "Hi," she said softly.

"Hi," I said in mild disbelief. "I didn't think you'd come."

She smiled. "Of course I'd come," she said. "I had a bit of trouble getting Harry's cloak; he kept asking me where I was going. Then, Ron asked me to check his homework. That was a bloody disaster."

I laughed at how distressed she sounded. "Well, I'm glad you came," I said. Then I became more serious. "I'm sorry about what I said to you at the Ball. I'm sorry I just left you there. I'm sorry I got so angry. I'm sorry I ruined your night. I'm sorry-"

Hermione put her finger on my lip. "Shh," she said. "It's okay. I know you're sorry. I knew you were sorry as soon as you left. I saw your face, Draco." She took her hand off my lip, but I didn't say anything. I just looked down at the floor, ashamed of myself.

"Can you ever forgive me?" I asked quietly, still looking down.

"Already forgiven," Hermione replied just as quietly.

I looked up at her and hugged her tightly around her middle. She hugged me around my neck, and we stayed like that for a long time. I was so happy to have her back.

When she finally pulled away, I leaned in a little, and she leaned in even closer. I kissed her firmly on the lips, an after the first-second-initial-shock, she kissed back. I slowly moved my hand up to her face, and into her dangling curls. Her hand moved into my hair, and started wrapping small locks around her slender fingers. She stepped even closer, but we were jolted apart as a door opened somewhere down the hall Snape had come from.

Hermione stopped breathing for a moment as we heard footsteps coming in this direction. She quickly picked up the invisibility cloak from the ground and threw it over us. I bent down and pulled her down with me, just so that we fit better.

Through the cloak, we saw none other than our headmaster, heading towards the dungeons.

Hermione squeezed my arm and looked at me. My heart beat quickened as I realized that I couldn't go back to my common room until he left or I was _extremely_ careful. Though the first option sounded better, I knew the longer I waited to get back into bed, the more trouble I'd be in.

"What are you going to do?" Hermione asked in a frantic whisper.

"Well, there is a passageway near the Charms classroom that leads into the dungeons a few feet away from our common room," I whispered back. "I'll just go through there."

Worry shone in her brown eyes. "Be careful," she whispered.

I nodded and kissed her cheek. I lifted the cloak on one side, and looked at where we just were. I smiled in that direction and turned to run towards the Charms classroom.

I stopped dead in my tracks as I found myself face to face with Professor McGonagall.

"Mr. Malfoy, what are you doing out so late?" she asked.

My spine tingled and my mind raced, trying to figure a way out of this one. "You know, Professor," I said, pretending to rub sleep out of my eyes, "I was just asking myself the same question."

Professor McGonagall raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"I used to be a sleep walker, you see? I thought I grew out of it, but I guess not," I said, faking a yawn. I suppressed a smile as her glare softened.

"Well, I suppose you'd better get back to your common room. But how you got out here..." she mumbled as she passed me and went up the stairs Hermione was hiding under.

I let out a breath when she was gone from sight.

"I can not believe you just got out of that," Hermione whispered, peeking out from under the cloak.

I chuckled and shook my head. "Me either. Well, good night, Granger," I said and headed towards the Charms room.

"Night, Malfoy," I heard Hermione squeak. I heard her light footsteps as she ran up the stairs and down the hall.

I smiled to myself and walked back to the common room. I didn't run into Professor Dumbledore as I had expected; the halls were quite empty. I slipped back into the common room and into my bed, and fell asleep almost immediately, thinking about Hermione.


End file.
